Journal profile · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology-Biophysics
BBA Advances
ISSN 2667-1603 · Elsevier · Netherlands
BBA Advances: CAS Zone 3 · Biology (2026 Xinrui edition); impact factor 4.5 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,810; median 81 days to acceptance (72 articles, last 24 months); 41 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
BBA Advances is published by Elsevier and is classed under Biology in the CAS Journal Ranking. By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Glycosylation and Glycoproteins Research, Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior and Photosynthetic Processes and Mechanisms, together about 30.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Molecular Biology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
One of the 10 topical journals of BBA.BBA Advances is an open access journal that publishes high-quality research advancing fundamental understanding of biological processes at the molecular level. The journal serves as a forum for studies that reveal mechanistic insights into the structure, dynamics, interactions, and functions of biomolecules and that connect these molecular discoveries to cellular and physiological outcomes.We prioritize detailed molecular and mechanistic investigations of individual biomolecules and molecular systems, including proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and macromolecular assemblies. Submissions should provide in-depth biochemical, biophysical, structural, or molecular analyses that elucidate how biomolecular properties and interactions govern biological function. Studies integrating molecular insights with the biological context—such as cellular pathways, metabolic regulation, or disease mechanisms—are particularly encouraged.Research topics commonly featured in the journal include areas at the interface of biochemistry, biophysics, and molecular biology, such as structural and functional analysis of proteins and nucleic acids, enzymology and metabolic regulation, biomolecular interactions and signaling mechanisms, membrane and macromolecular assemblies, redox and metabolic processes, and molecular mechanisms underlying cellular regulation, host–pathogen interactions, and human disease.The journal seeks studies that provide clear mechanistic advances supported by quantitative and experimental evidence. Purely descriptive studies, reports limited to cataloging biomolecular changes, or work relying solely on expression analysis or simple over-expression/knockdown experiments without mechanistic insight fall outside the journal’s scope. Similarly, purely computational (in silico) studies; works on uncharacterized natural products, extracts, and traditional medicine; clinical studies; or case reports will generally be declined.By highlighting detailed molecular investigations that link biochemical mechanism to biological function, BBA Advances aims to accelerate discovery across the molecular life sciences and to provide a platform for work that advances understanding of how biomolecules drive complex biological systems.The journal publishes full-length research articles, reviews, mini-reviews, and brief reports (BBA Research Letters).In addition, we also publish articles within the theme "Five Burning Questions,” an initiative to promote a scientific topic in a succinct and focused format. Here, we offer researchers the opportunity to identify what they find to be the five most important questions that need to be addressed in a research area that is important to them. These papers are published in a special subsection of the journal. See the Guide for Authors for details on the format.BBA Advances operates with the same high standards and rigor of peer review as the other BBA journals.For any questions, please contact us at bbadva@elsevier.com.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology-Biophysics
Editor-in-chief Daniel OtzenPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 1 in mainland China (about 3%); most named United States 10, United Kingdom 5, Germany 5, Denmark 4, Taiwan, China 2 (38 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Glycosylation and Glycoproteins ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology14%
- Lipid Membrane Structure and BehaviorBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology11.2%
- Photosynthetic Processes and MechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.6%
- Mitochondrial Function and PathologyBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5%
- RNA and protein synthesis mechanismsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5%
- Carbohydrate Chemistry and SynthesisChemistry4.5%
- RNA modifications and cancerBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4.5%
- Galectins and Cancer BiologyImmunology and Microbiology3.9%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Biology Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Biology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Biophysics | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 4.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 6.2LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 6.2Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.91LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.02LetPub ·
- h-index
- 19OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 63OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.3OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 4.4%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 39LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 197 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| 2025 | 41 | 41 | 223 |
| 2024 | 23 | 23 | 157 |
| 2023 | 40 | 40 | 625 |
| 2022 | 29 | 29 | 409 |
| 2021 | 38 | 38 | 392 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
81 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 58 days – 121 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 1 days (72 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 84 days
- Sample
- 72 articles with submission and acceptance dates (79 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 10 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 4 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 86 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 1 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 14 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | USD 2,810 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 2,410 / EUR 2,250 / GBP 1,930 / JPY 298,910 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 2,300 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,310 | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- Highlights
- Required
Article types accepted13, with length limits
- bba research lettersFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsLength not stated
- brief reportFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
- five burning questionsFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsLength not stated
- full-length research articlesFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsLength not stated
- letterFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
- mini-reviewsFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsLength not stated
- regular paperFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
- regular research paperFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
- research articleFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
- reviewFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…main text ≤ 10,000 words
- review articleFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
- review articlesFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsLength not stated
- viewpointFull-length research articles (regular paper), brief reports (BBA Research Letters), review articles, mini-reviews, and Five Burning QuestionsReviews and mini-r…Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Single anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a single anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharing allowed Model summary
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication. In support of Open Science, this journal offers its authors a free preprint posting service on SSRN, Elsevier’s preprint and early research …
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- Netherlands
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2667-1603
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about BBA Advances
What CAS zone is BBA Advances in?
In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Biology. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of BBA Advances?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 4.5; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 6.2, h-index 19.
How long does peer review take at BBA Advances?
Based on the dates recorded on 72 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 81 days (interquartile range 58–121 days); authors report an average review time of about 10 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of BBA Advances?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; Highlights: Required. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of BBA Advances based?
Of the 38 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 1 (about 3%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (10), United Kingdom (5) and Germany (5). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index BBA Advances?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, BBA Advances is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is BBA Advances open access, and what is the APC?
BBA Advances is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,810.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .